Modular Permit Filed For Le Bonheur Expansion

Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare has filed a $13.6 million permit application with the city-county Office of Construction Code Enforcement to install a modular system that will provide the energy needed to operate the $327 million Le Bonheur Children’s Medical Center rising at 848 Adams Ave.

Hospital spokeswoman Sara Burnett said the permit is for “the largest modular energy plant in the country that will involve boilers, chillers and generators. It’s a big part of our sustainability efforts to lower our costs and our energy usage.”

Le Bonheur is working with Johnson Controls on the

installation of the modular, which began April 8 and was expected to last about two weeks. The modular’s address will be 905 Poplar Ave.

The hospital last summer filed a $180 million building permit for the 613,512-square-foot, 12-story facility, which is adjacent to its existing campus.

Skanska USA is the contractor for the project and FKP Architects designed the new hospital, which will double Le Bonheur’s current space for patient care, research and teaching.

Le Bonheur first announced plans for the new facility in 2005, and it broke ground on the first stages of the building earlier last year. The hospital filed its initial permits for demolition and site work, while the most recent permit allows for continued construction, which is expected to wrap in the summer of 2010.

After the new building is complete, the hospital will then demolish part of the existing hospital, renovate other parts of it and build a 500-spot parking garage, with completion slated for 2011.

The total project cost – including construction, demolition, equipment, fees, the new parking garage and renovation to a portion of the existing building – will be $327 million.

The address of 848 Adams Ave. was Le Bonheur’s original 1952 address. The campus will have a new boulevard entrance at that spot and a parking area.

Source: The Daily News Online & Chandler Reports

Influence 1 Foundation Seeks Loan Approval

The Influence 1 Foundation, an education and community-based nonprofit group, is renovating the commercial building at 665 Madison Ave. to use for new office and programming space.

The foundation is going before the Center City Development Corp. today for approval of its development loan application to help cover the cost of the renovation of the 4,552-square-foot building. The time frame for construction is May to July, and the foundation will submit renovation and repair plans to the Center City Commission Design Review Board in May.

The CCDC will meet today at 9 a.m. at the CCC office, 114 North Main St.

Retail Sales Fall Unexpectedly in March

Retail sales fell unexpectedly in March, delivering a setback to hopes that the economy’s steep slide could be bottoming out.

President Barack Obama and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said in separate speeches Tuesday that while other recent economic signs have been hopeful, problems persist and a true recovery will take more time.

The U.S. Commerce Department has reported retail sales dipped 1.1 percent in March. It was the biggest decline in three months and a much weaker showing than the 0.3 percent increase that analysts expected.

A big drop in auto sales led the overall slump in demand. Sales also plunged at clothing stores, appliance outlets and furniture stores.

Seasonal adjustments could partly explain the unexpectedly weak showing for retail sales. The March 2008 performance had been boosted by an early Easter, while the holiday did not occur this year until April, delaying some shopping.

The overall economy, as measured by the gross domestic product, fell at an annual rate of 6.3 percent in the final quarter of last year, the biggest slide in a quarter-century led by the largest drop in consumer spending in 28 years. Consumer spending is closely watched because it accounts for about 70 percent of total economic activity.

The 1.1 percent drop in retail sales last month followed a revised 0.3 percent increase in February, originally reported as a 0.1 percent fall. Retail sales rose 1.9 percent in January, which followed six straight months of declines.

For March, auto sales fell 2.3 percent, following a 3 percent drop in February. Auto sales in March were 23.5 percent below year-ago levels as automakers struggle through their deepest downturn in decades.

Excluding autos, retail sales fell 0.9 percent after a 1 percent rise in February. That also was worse than analysts’ forecasts of a flat reading for last month.

Sales at appliance stores fell 5.9 percent last month and furniture stores reported a 1.7 percent decline. Sales at specialty clothing stores fell 1.8 percent and dipped 0.2 percent at general merchandise stores, a category that includes Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Target Corp. and Macy’s.

Sales at gasoline stations fell 1.6 percent, while food and beverage stores saw one of the few increases for the month, a rise of 0.5 percent.

Wine Shipping Measure Passes State Senate

A proposal to allow Tennessee consumers to have wine shipped directly to their homes has passed the state Senate.

The measure sponsored by Sen. Paul Stanley, a Germantown Republican, was approved 22-8 Monday evening. It would allow wineries that acquire a $300 license to ship up to three cases to Tennessee consumers per year.

Stanley said wineries would be subject to Tennessee’s taxes and laws. He said strict reporting requirements would give state officials a clear idea of how much wine is being directly shipped into the state and who is receiving it.

The companion bill is scheduled to be voted on by a House subcommittee today.

Study Confirms Effectiveness Of Wright Medical Product

A study that will be published in the June issue of the International Wound Journal confirms the effectiveness of a product developed by Wright Medical Group Inc. for the treatment of diabetic foot ulcers.

After 12 weeks, the study showed that the product Graftjacket Matrix led to the complete wound healing in 70 percent of patients, compared to only 46 percent of the control group patients who did not receive the treatment.

Diabetic foot ulcers affect more than 3 million Americans each year, or approximately 15 percent of the 20.8 million Americans with diabetes.

Wright Medical Group is based in Arlington.

St. Jude Researchers Receive Science Award

Scientists at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital who represent the interdisciplinary team studying acute lymphoblastic leukemia have been recognized by the American Association for Cancer Research with its Team Science Award.

The award was given to the scientists at the AACR’s 100th annual meeting earlier this month.

The St. Jude team has published more than 1,000 original articles in the past decade, appearing regularly in leading medical and scientific journals, including the New England Journal of Medicine, Journal of the American Medical Association, Nature, Cancer Cell and The Lancet.

Farmers Market to Open Fourth Season Saturday

The Memphis Farmers Market will open for its fourth season Saturday at the Central Depot in the South Main Historic Arts District.

The nonprofit organization draws local vendors who bring an array of locally grown food items. The market also will feature performances by local musicians.

There will be more than 60 vendors and artisans each Saturday and more than 100 events planned for the season.

The Memphis Farmers Market will be open from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. every Saturday and run through Oct. 31.

Methodist University Hospital To Webcast Brain Surgery

Methodist University Hospital will offer public access to an awake craniotomy Tuesday.

The webcast, which can be viewed at www.methodisthealth.org/AwakeBrainSurgery, will feature nationally recognized neurosurgeons Dr. Allen K. Sills Jr. and Dr. L. Madison Michael II. Questions about the procedure will be answered live via e-mail during the one-hour webcast.

The live webcast, which will begin at 4 p.m., will also be archived and available to view by visiting methodisthealth.org and clicking “Surgical Webcasts.”

An awake craniotomy is necessary when a tumor is present in a portion of the brain that controls a critical function such as speech, sensation or motor movement. The patient is under full sedation until the neurosurgeon reaches the brain. At this time, the patient is brought to consciousness to communicate with the neurosurgeon to ensure no critical structures controlling speech or movement are affected.

The patient is asked to speak and to move his or her fingers so the neurosurgeon knows which areas of the brain not to disturb. While the tumor is being removed, patients do not feel any pain because the brain is not a pain-sensitive structure.

Tax Break Approved for Mud Island Apartments

Grand Island LLC, which is building a $19 million apartment development on almost 10 acres on Mud Island, got a tax freeze from the Center City Revenue Finance Corp. Tuesday. The tax freeze, a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOT) benefit, will save the project $2.47 million for the life of the 10-year PILOT. The project as proposed will include a storage building and clubhouse among the several buildings that are part of the project.